Romanian artist Nicolae Grigorescu leads New York Bonhams European painting auction

A painting by Romanian painter Nicolae Grigorescu is described by New York Bonhams auction house as a “true highlight.” The painting is “The Bull Cart,” featuring day-to-day peasant life with the backdrop of a rural landscape. The painting is estimated at USD 100,000-USD 150,000.

“The significance of “The Bull Cart” by Nicolae Grigorescu lies in the fact that it is the first major work by the great Romanian master to appear on the North American art market. It is not only rare but also of exceptional quality. It has been in private hands for over 50 years. A household name in Romania, Grigorescu continues to gain recognition in the West,” said Madalina Lazen, Bonhams Senior Specialist of European Paintings New York.

Grigorescu was greatly influenced by numerous French painters in the village of Barbizon, near the Forest of Fontainebleau. It was there that he was influenced by Jean-Francois Millet’s renderings of working peasants, Corot’s trees and Troyon’s animals. Discovering his appreciation and love of the simple lives of peasants, he started to paint en plein air, developing his own language for landscapes, which made him a role model for future generations of artists. Grigorescu is considered today to be the founder of modern Romanian painting.